Primary Lesson 3

8/9/2019 Primary Lesson 3

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Information for Teachers

In the last lesson we learned that global and local food systems

are complex and that all regions have problems with ensuring

food security for all people. This lesson gives the basis for

understanding what we can do individually and collectively to

reduce hunger in our world.

Objective 1 uses the concept of real or mythical heroes to

illustrate how courageous people can work to make the world a

better place for all of us and encourages the children to think

about local heroes who have made a difference in their

communities and the world. The idea presented is that we all

have a contribution to make in ending hunger and that each

one of us, even in small ways, can be a hero to someone else.

Objective 2 suggests specific actions that can be taken by

the children to help fight hunger for themselves, their families

and their communities. Using case studies as a basis forgenerating ideas, students are encouraged to apply what they

have learned to their own communities.

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The lesson has

been designed

to be covered in

45 minutes, but

it can be

covered in

greater or lessdetail to fit the

needs of the

class. Teachers

are encouraged

to cover all

objectives and

content areas.

For each

objective, a

variety of

activities anddiscussion

points are

provided from

which teachers

can select

those most

appropriate for

their students.

The materials

for each lesson

can be found in

the Materials

section

beginning on

page 75.

primary level

lesson 3

What can We Do to Help End Hunger?

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Object ive 1To know that we all can and should actto fight hunger

Statements:

About World Food Day

Feeding Minds, Fighting Hunger

Every person can be a hero in fi ghting hunger

Great heroes have existed throughout time.Legends exist in every culture about great heroes

who have fought against poverty and hunger for

poor people. Many of the legends are based on

fact and many have to do with the religious

beliefs of the people. Although some legends

are based on conquest, the enduring heroes

are those who helped to free people from

poverty and hunger.

In addition to legends, real people

have changed the course of history and

fought human suffering and hunger in allcountries of the world. Many of these people

made tremendous personal sacrifices in their

efforts to help their fellow humans.

The qualities of a real hero are

moral strength, courage and the

willingness to help others.

Organizational/governmental

heroes: Many people are also working to

make a difference to hunger in

organizations and governments.

Organizations and governmental agencies have resources to help us. Hundreds of

organizations have been set up to work on various aspects of the hunger problem.

Organizations include private groups, governmental agencies, international

organizations and regional coalitions. The scope of their missions includes relief,

research and advocacy. Some groups concentrate on specific countries; some groups

concentrate on specific areas, such as education or agriculture.

Who are our heroes? Ask the children to list three of their heroes, living or

dead, real or mythical. Discuss what personal qualities these heroes have in common.

Discuss what personal qualities we value as people.

From this list, select several heroes and leaders who have worked againstpoverty, hunger or injustice and briefly describe their contributions. Ask the children if

these heroes are very different from the rest of us, or whether we can all find the

qualities within ourselves to work for change.

feeding mindsfighting hunger

a worldfree from hunger

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Materials

Concept

Content

Activities


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Ask the children if they know people in their community who are caring and

have the courage to help others in emergency and day-to-day situations. Do they

think that they are heroes? Why or why not? Have the children describe the

contributions of some of the local people who are helping others.

Ask the children what they themselves would like to do to help their families,

their community or their world. Ask them to write a story about, or draw a picture of,

what they would like to do to end hunger.

Discuss how their class is part of thousands of classes all over the world

participating in World Food Day lessons. World Food Day is an annual, global activity

with the objective of raising awareness of hunger and malnutrition in the world and

encouraging people worldwide to take action against hunger. Children around the

world are learning together about how they can work together to be a part of ending

hunger. Read or paraphrase the statement About World Food Dayto students to let

them know about some of the worldwide efforts to fight hunger.The lessons that the classes have all been using are Feeding Minds, Fighting

Hunger, and were developed to provide education to help end hunger. Read or

paraphrase the statement describing the project goals and ideals. Discuss how the

children could benefit from exchanging the information they have gathered on hunger

with other classes in their country or around the world. Send these suggestions to the

Partners in Feeding Minds, Fighting Hunger listed in the Introduction.

Contact, or have the children contact, the international organizations that are

Partners in Feeding Minds, Fighting Hunger. Some of these organizations have

country representatives or local project officers who could be contacted and invited

to the school to talk about their work. Ask the organizations to send information on

their projects or on their activities to end hunger that could be shared with the class.Have the class contact others involved in hunger organizations and local,

national, regional or international leaders and ask what is being done about each of

the pillars of support for food security (discussed in previous lessons). In addition,

have the children look up or request information indicating how much hunger exists in

their area.


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Materials

Concept

Content

Contact local civil authorities and invite them into the classroom to talk about

what local actions are being taken to prevent hunger and malnutrition. Have the

children interview a variety of public officials about local hunger projects or act ions.

Each child or group of children could then write a small summary report and present

it to the class.

Invite the local heroes who the children identified to come into the

classroom and talk about what they do to help others within the community.

Discuss the importance of education in fighting hunger. Much hunger is

related to poverty resulting from a lack of education. Children should be encouragedto stay in school and learn as much as they can about agriculture and nutrition in

addition to basic skills.

Discuss the benefits of a career in social services and fighting hunger and

how students can learn to help in this area. Invite local health and extension agents

into the classroom to discuss how many people are needed in careers related to

fighting hunger.

Object ive 2To identify how we can fight hunger andmalnutrition in our own communities

Project Case Studies

We can all take action to help end hunger

Steps can be taken to solve the problems of hunger and malnutrition at thecommunity, national and international levels. Sometimes the steps are small and

sometimes they are great. But the important thing is to think about the problem and

be aware of working towards solutions.


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Activities

Young people have the creativity and energy to tackle great problems such as

hunger. Case studies provide examples of what has actually been done by young

people around the world. Using case studies is a way of providing hope to the children,

as well as acting as a guide to how they, too, can make changes in their world.

Assign a case study to each child or group of children (or read several case

studies to younger children). Have the children summarize the case study to the class

and make suggestions for how a similar project could work in their community.

Ask the children for their ideas on actions that they, and others, can take in

their communities and in the world to help solve the problems of hunger and

malnutrition. List those actions and identify who could carry them out. A list of some

actions that are being taken around the world is provided below.

Pick one or two examples from the list created by the children or from the list

provided, and explore how these actions could be carried out and the ways in whichthese actions could help fight hunger in the local area or in the world.

Examples of actions:

Help improve food supplies by increasing the quantity and

variety of foods available:

- p lant home, community and school gardens

- find ways to raise poultry, small animals or fish to eat and/or sell

- re-discover forgotten foods that grow in the area

- grow the best crops for sale and use

- match crops to soil and water conditions

- use the best tools available for farming in the region

- find the best balance between sale and home use of crops- become involved in co-operative efforts to grow and sell foods

- support local farmers; buy locally grown foods

- establish centers or food banks to share food.

Help keep food safe to eat:

- keep food clean

- keep food preparation areas and utensils clean

- keep stored food dry and away from insects and animals.


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Help all people meet their needs for food and nutrients:

- know your own needs for food and nutrients

- know the different needs for different people (life stages)

- seek the most nourishing foods available

- volunteer to work for hunger issues

- volunteer to work in food or meal distribution centres

- establish food centers or food banks to share extra food

- work with the food industry to redistribute surplus food

- invite commercial food growers and producers to be part of the solution

for community hunger problems.

Learn about foods, nutrition and hunger and share knowledge

and ideas with others:

- learn about the food system in your area

- know who in the community is working to fight hunger, listen to them, andshare ideas with them

- know who in the community has knowledge about health and farming,

listen to them, and share ideas with them

- take information home to families and neighbours

- share school projects and reports in community spaces

- share ideas with leaders in the community and nation

- urge community leaders and service providers(doctors/nurses/hospital

workers/librarians) to become involved with school projects around issues

of hunger and nutrition.

SummaryWe have been talking about the problems of hunger in the world. Our world has made

progress in feeding its people, but many people still do not have enough to eat. There

is a need to increase food supplies and expand the variety of foods in many

countries. Although many problems exist in fighting world hunger, we have heroes

who are working on ways to feed everyone. Each of us can be a hero and take action

against hunger. If we learn the causes of hunger and work on a personal and a

community level to identify and solve these problems we can end hunger.



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Project Case Studies

Each year, young scientists from agricultural researchinstitutes in the developing world, sponsored by the WorldBank, the Consultative Group on International Agricultural

Research (CGIAR) and the RodaleInstitute, are invited for a Gardening

for Food around the World eventat Epcot Center, a popularscience-based tourist attractionin the United States. Thepurpose of the event is not totrain the scientists in researchskills but rather in

communication.

Part of the programme involvesbuilding replicas of the types of farms

found in Latin America, Africa, Asia and theUnited States. The visiting scientists, withtheir newfound communication skills,explain the agricultural issues of their homecountries to thousands of Epcot visitorseach day, and demonstrate how research ishelping overcome the problems.The young scientists thus get a chance totell their stories to an audience in thedeveloped world. And they are then able togo back home better equipped to furtherresearch in their own countries and more ableto discuss the issues with policy-makers, other scientistsand the farmers themselves. The wider their audience, themore impact their research will have in improving foodproduction and food security.

Students from four international organizations havejoined forces with Ghanaian students to design alow-cost, interdisciplinary approach to ruralcommunity development. The project offers an

excellent example of how young men and

women can work together to improvehealth and nutrition in developing

countries.

The project was initiated by theInternational Federation of Medical

Students, which received support andparticipation from the International Association

of Agricultural Students, the InternationalForestry Students Association and the

International Pharmacy Students Federation.

The approach, Village concept projects ,recognizes the intimate relationship among health,

food production and the management of naturalresources. One of its important focuses is onensuring local supplies of protein. The local andinternational agricultural students have thereforeworked with villagers to plant demonstration plotsof cowpeas and soybeans and introduce farmers toinnovative and environmentally sound farmingtechniques. They have also established a model

poultry farm.

These village concept projects could not have beencarried out without the participation of Ghanaianstudents, who acted as local coordinators. Thestudents also worked in close cooperation with thelocal Village Development Committee. Sixty-eightstudents from 15 countries worked together on thefirst village concept p roject. This was designed toserve as a model for similar international studentdevelopment projects and proved sosuccessful that a second projectwas launched almost immediatelyafter the first had been concluded.

Less than five years ago, Ren Xuping, a younglandless school teacher in China, received a giftof three rabbits from Heifer Project International(HPI), a non-governmental organization (NGO)that believes in the entrepreneurialspirit of youth. Ren Xuping was given the rabbitsafter his neighbours identified him as theneediest person in the village. His onlyobligation was a promise to pass on the sameas he had received in other words, to givethe first offspring toanother needyindividual or family.

Ren Xuping hasmore than fulfilledhis promise. He has

successfully raised more than 21 generations ofrabbits and has a thriving business of 200 000rabbits. He has given away hundreds of rabbitsto his neighbours and has also sharedinformation on how to care for the animals.

In another part of China, HPI gave ducks to ayoung family. In three years, the youngentrepreneurs built a duck farm with an annual

production of 400 000 ducks. They are nowsupplying breeding ducks to other familiesand have started cottage industries to

market duck meat, eggs and duck down.

HPI supplies food- and income-producing farm animals to

youth and their families in 40countries.

Policies should

include youth as

agents, not just

beneficiaries of

development

programmes.

Elizeu Chaves, 24,

President,

Brazilian Youth

Committee

We are experts on

what it is like being

young. We realize

when our involve-

ment is real and

when we are just

being used as wall-

flowers, legitimizing

decisions that have

already been taken.

We are knocking at

the door, please let

us in, now.

Camilla Lindquist,

National Council of

Swedish Youth

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feeding mindsfighting hungera world

free from hunger

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A seminar for unemployed rural youth on theCaribbean island of Dominica urged them to set upfarm-related businesses such as processing fruit.However, ten young people saw a businessopportunity to make and sell candles. Much of theisland did not have electricity so there was greatdemand for candles which had to be importedfrom the United States and the United Kingdom.

The seminar organizers advised them to forget the idea,but the youngsters cheerfully ignored this advice. They

elected three women to run the cooperative and learnedhow to make candles. Next they needed

seed capital. No bank would lend them

money but the United States Agency for InternationalDevelopment (USAID) finally came to the rescue with

a grant of $4 000, with which they bought the rawmaterials wax and string and set to work. Localshops were happy to buy their candles and thecooperative reinvested the profits in the business.Members got a loan of $5 000, and after a yeareach began to draw a small wage. AfterDominicas electricity supplies increased, the

demand for candles fell so the cooperative beganexporting to other islands in the region.

Today Candle Industries Cooperative has 16 members and

all are proud of their achievement in setting up a viablesmall business that gives them an income and shows whata group of young people can achieve on its own.

Banks rarely lend money to poor rural peopleto improve food production methods, so inBangladesh villagers often have to pay ruinousinterest rates to moneylenders who seize theirland if they default.

One village badly needed a machinefor threshing rice. Previously this hadbeen done by hand a crude, slowprocess with a lot of spoilage. Agroup of young people set up a

credit union into which the villagers paid a smallsum each week. In time, this fund was bigenough to buy the threshing machine that wasused by each household in turn during theharvest season. Now the fund also lends moneyto the poorest villagers. They use it to buy

poultry and repay the loans through the sale ofeggs.

Not only have these activities increasedvillage food supplies but they have alsogiven the villagers a sense of self-suffi-

ciency and self-esteem.

The American 4-H movement is proof that oneof the fastest ways to spread new food andagriculture technology is through young people.In 1898, Will Otwell, an agricultural trainer inIllinois, found that few adult farmers wereinterested in attending meetings to learn aboutnew agricultural practices. He decided to forget

parents and concentrate on their children.Otwell offered the farm youth improved maize

seed, with the promise of a prize to whoeverobtained the largest yield. In this way the youngpeople would conduct an on-farmdemonstration for their parents of theadvantages of planting top-quality seedvarieties. In the first year, over 500 young peoplerequested maize seed. By 1901, their numbershad grown to 1 500, and by 1904 to 50 000.Today, the 4-H Programme has 5 millionmembers in the United States and the concepthas been copied around the world. The 4-Hs

stand for head, hands, heart and health.

A group of 100 Girl Guides is providing increased food,income and hope for two isolated villages in Burundi. Withhelp from FAOs TeleFood campaign, the Guides havestarted raising chickens and growing fruit and vegetables.

The World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts(WAGGGS), with 10 million girls and young womenmembers in 136 countries, has made combating hungerand malnutrition a focus for local activities andinternational solidarity.

In March 1999, Girl Guides of Canada presented the Red

Cross with a cheque for $100 000 as a contribution tofamine relief in the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea.Guides across the country have been involved both infund-raising and in activities to improve nutrition in theirown communities, including working with local food banks,assisting food programmes for senior citizens and planningcommunity gardens to provide fresh produce for womensshelters. Similarly, Girl Guides in Austria and Costa Ricaare working together to improve nutrition and food safety.

Since 1995, FAO and WAGGGS have awarded a Nutrit ionMedal each year to an individual Guide or group for anout-standing project in the field of nutrition improvement ornutrition education.

Poverty eradication

should proceed in

the African, not the

Western sense.

Development work-

ers must understand

and prioritize local

values and ideolo-

gies and consider

local youth practices

in decision-making.

It should be a bot-

tom-up approach.

Benedetta Rossi, 24

World Organization

of Alumni of Catholic

Education

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A World Free From Hunger

Our vision is a world without hunger and malnutrition a world in which each and every person can be assured of

having the food they need to be well-nourished and healthy. Our vision is a world that provides for and protects the

welfare and human dignity of all of its people. A world in which all children can grow, learn and flourish, developing into

healthy, active, caring members of society.

While many achievements have been made in alleviating hunger and malnutrition worldwide, we still fall very far

short of having a world in which all people can be free from hunger. We see education and information on issues related

to world hunger, food security and nutrition as key factors in making this global vision a reality. Thus, we focus ourefforts on the young and their teachers. If every year, on World Food Day (16 October), children all over the world are

introduced simultaneously to common teaching materials about hunger and malnutrition and what needs to be done,

would they be more likely to grow up understanding the interdependences of our world? If they are taught lessons from

different parts of the world, from different cultures and circumstances, would they be more ready to work together to

solve the problems of hunger and food insecurity? Are there ways in which a generation of young people can be

nurtured to develop responsible global citizenship?

We believe that the answers to all these questions are YES. As educators, you are in a special position to instil

in young people a sense of caring and commitment to join in the fight against hunger. The imagination, ideals and

energy of young people represent a vital resource for the continuing development of their communities and nations.

You, their teachers, can help make a difference through informing, sharing knowledge, encouraging participation, and

showing the young that they have an important role to play in achieving a world free from hunger.

We encourage you to join with teachers and students all over the world to participate in Feeding Minds, Fighting

Hunger.



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Statement: Feeding Minds, Fighting Hunger


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feeding mindsfighting hungera world

World Food Day is celebrated every year on 16 October to commemorate the founding of the Food and

Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in 1945. World Food Day aims to heighten public awareness of the

plight of the worlds hungry and malnourished and to encourage people worldwide to take action against hunger. More

than 150 countries observe this event every year. In the United States, 450 national, private voluntary organizations

sponsor World Food Day, and local groups are active in almost every community. First observed in 1981, each year

World Food Day highlights a particular theme on which to focus activities. The theme for 2000 was A Millennium Free

From Hunger. Themes from the previous years are Youth Against Hunger (1999) and Women Feed the World

(1998).

A related initiative is the TeleFood Campaign, in which television and radio broadcasts, concerts, celebrityappeals, sporting and other events pass on the message that it is time to do something about the problem of world

hunger. The objective of TeleFood is to raise awareness and mobilize resources for microprojects on food security.

Donations to TeleFood support hundreds of small projects in developing countries that help poor farmers grow more

food or generate income to buy enough food to feed their families. Materials for recent World Food Day/TeleFood

themes are available on the FAO Web site.

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Statement: About World Food Day

Primary Lesson 3

Documents

Transcript of Primary Lesson 3